The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-11-01
WHISKY DRINKERS FOOLED.
1t is Not Very Hard Matter to Deceive
Even a Veteran Upper.
from Me Philadelphia Press.

From the Philadelphia Press
II tell you no one but professional whis-
ky faster can tell good liquors from bad"
said gentleman who for years has been en-
gagged in the wholesale business to a Ddilu
NeiCs reporter. "You and your friends
walk up to bar and insist upon having a
certain bottle set out before you. That
particular liquor suits your taste. 1t may
or may not be good whisky, but repeat,
no one but professional tasters, or men who
have been i'll the wholesale business for
years, can tell beyond question good
whisky from bad whisky, andl am ready
to make the test any time you may feel like
bringing whisky drinkers here for the pur-
pose"
The reporter wanted to see the test made
at once and hunted up three men who, from
the quantity of liquors they imbibe, should
be competent subjects for experiment. One
was at the head of Delaware avenue COM
mission house, another was a Camden edi-
tor, and the third was employed as a writer
on Philadelphia papers for several years.
"Well, to start with, said the wholesaler,
who among you are able to tell whisky
from gin with your eyes closed and your
noses held tightly! Well, let's see. Oh,
you're ready to t ten to one you can tell,
and probably you can, but IN try you just
the same
The Camden editors eyes were blindfolded
and a patent clothespin was placed on his
nose. Two small glasses, one containing gin
and the other whisky, were placed in his
hands He swallowed a portion of the
whisky and exclaimed:
That's GIN
The others laughed. They always knew
the man who failed knew nothing about
liquors. The commission man tried it next.
tie said the gin was gin, and the Camden
man said the nose was not held tight enough
to keep the smell out The third man tried
1t three times and was afraid to venture an
opinion. He was given a glass of water,
and he was able to tell what it was immedi-
ately, much to the others surprise.
The commission man tasted each very
carefully, and picking out the 81 %
whisky, said:
This suits my taste best, but this Gndi-
eating the 81 glass is the best liquor" The
Camden editor selected the So IS as the best
and the 81 % as the worst, but he could do
nothing with the other two. The old news
paper writer was almost as badly mixed up
as was the commission merchant
''Now," continued the wholesale liquor
man, this 81 Is whisky, which one of you
selected, contains only five gallons of whisky
to the barrel. This suits nearly everybody
best because it is smoother. There is moth
ing poisonous in the whisky but it is simply
cologne spirits, with whisky, water, etc.
The dealer, in order to convince the men
that he had not mixed the whiskies UP for
the purpose of fooling them, wiped each
glass dry with towel, and, giving them to
one of the men, was able to tell which liquor
each glass had contained simply by the
smell. There was no smell at all in the
glass which had contained the 81 % whisky
How often you hear drinkers say:
Why, this whisky has been sweetened. ; ~
went on the dealer "Now, that is all non
sense, and Eli prove it to you beyond ques-
ton" He drew gallon of whisky from a
barrel, just out of bond, which bore the Gus
tom house marks showing that it was ten
above proof. Then he called for a pint of
syrup. Before mixing the syrup and whisky
he placed hydromatic bulb in the measure
and it sank no farther than the ten degree
mark above the circle marked ''P' for
proof. Then the pint of syrup was poured
into the gallon of whisky and the testing
bulb Immediately sank to ten degrees below
the proof mark.
You plainly see that if the wholesaler
was to Sweeten his whisky he would Just re-
duce it twenty degrees in the valuation of
the retailer, whose only means Of testing is
the hydrometer. "
Several other tests of the ability of
the old drinkers to distinguish between
the good and the bad liquors were made,
and in each instance the wholesalers decla-
ration that the average whisky drinker
don't know what he is drinking was pretty
clearly proven.